h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Okay - common breakages I found were..... you know the little flat 1x1 pieces that had a clip (same idea as the legoman's hand) coming out the side. I don't want to know how many of those pieces we've got lying around with only one side of the clip bit still attached. Or that the tiny little 1x1 type pieces would get cracks up their sides, which would mean they had a lot less grip when you tried to stick them down.

I'm, just waiting for the day when Lego release little boxes full of the pieces that go missing the most often. The lights, those darned 2x1x1 pieces......

They do sell individual pieces... You just have to check the mail order catalog, or maybe their website. Then you can buy individual bits.

My sister squashed a lego roof set by sitting on it. They were hollow bricks which were on the bottom a 4x2 with a slope to only 2x2 on the top. You got corners and roof top bits too, and could make really great roofs with them.
Provided your sister didn't sit on them.

I never really knew what happend to all the sets i had, that is how they all ended up in lots of peices in a huge box, some of the most fun i had with technic was crashing the cars, so I could put them back together

Corners breaking on the chunky bits, and the whole piece breaking in half if it was one of the flat ones that was at least a 4x2.
Also the flat 1x1 used to get stuck inside the chunky pieces, making it almost impossible to use the chunky bit. And it was always a real pain in the butt to try and get that little 1x1 out from the bigger piece as well..
But they are pretty damn durable. I don't think we've had to discard many more than a handful of pieces throughout the years.

I'd forgotten teh clip pieces, and windowframes but they were virtually indestructable. I found taht my (now nearly non-existant) lego sets had a certain life cycle.

1. Build model depicted on box
2. Build alternative model
3. Integration with other lego sets
4. Loss of origional pieces (replaced with multi-coloured blocks)
5. Completely bizzare thing made on a whim
6. breakages
7. loss of pieces to alternate dimension (or hoover)

Does this sound familiar or am I a strange bloke who lieks lists.

Then a sense of being "houseproud" strikes, and you get:

8) Put pieces in linen bags and send through washing machine.

I would say, that the first thing I think of, when I hear the word LEGO, is the minifigure. The little LEGO-man, but I dont know if that qualifies as a brick. Otherwise I would definitely say 2x4 chunk. It was the very first LEGO-brick developed, and has actually changed its looks and size several times.

I never realised that brick had ever changes. I know tehre were variations (such as teh version that could have wheels put on it) but never and actual change

The change of size of a Lego brick can't have been very big, unless it was the height of it that changed. I mean, how smart would it be to every once in a while change the size, so that everyone had to buy all new stuff or the new pieces wouldn't fit with the old ones??

Unles sthey discontinued a complete type years ago, or certain blocks (liek teh unpopular 500x1500) Or the godzilla minifig.

When LEGO first started producing LEGO-bricks, the quality of them was pretty low. There were no inside tubes to keep the bricks properly attached to each-other. This tubing-system is still being developed for the better. Some slight changes have been made of the size, but that lies many years behind. Today it is very hard to find first-edition LEGO-bricks, so no-one notices the changes today. But if you compare the first brick with a recent one, you would think they were made from two different companies. On the first LEGO-brick, no LEGO-logo was on the studs and the plastic was a different type than the one used today. LEGO has also cleaned up their brick-database, so that several bricks are no longer in production. Overall there is about 11.000 different bricks.

11.000? Wow, I did not know that.

On a side note, one of my former colleagues works/worked at the Lego Helpline, where customers could call and ask stuff about their Lego models. Pretty cool job.

I actually saw a tubeless block once.

And teh helpline is virtually unnececary now, models were harder when I was a lad.

Hmmm.... I've had several tubeless blocks. Most of my lego I got second hand from car boot sales. As well as being tubeless in the middle, which meant that they slipped easily, and also were easy to break as they didn't have those supporting bits from teh side to the tube either, they also had a weird dip in the pointy-up bits where now they say "lego". Instead of it being flat, they had a concave dome down. The plastic itself was a lot shinier than the plastic used now, which made them look newer.

I didn't realise they were particularly special.

<BB<

Actually, on teh subject of shiney, did you ever find taht white blocks (in particular) could get irreversably dirty? I found that no matter how hard you washed them they still stayed a slightly mucky white. Red was bad for this too.

I think I'm going to be forced to say the taller 2x2 piece just because I have a shirt that has a perfect isometric drawing of that particular piece on it. If you don't know quite what I mean just grab a 2x2 brick, hold it by the corners instead of the edges, tip the back corner slightly upwards and hold it in front of your face.

Incidentally it's also the softest T-shirt I've ever owned. It feels almost like flannel (but it's not).

I've had a few pieces break on me. Technics couplers tend to snap where you put the axles into them if you abuse them too much. My friend broke the clip on my Lego watch because he didn't turn it far enough before he pulled it apart.

The great thing about Lego is that they'll replace broken pieces for only the cost of shipping.

Hey, who said Legos have to be just childhood memories? Granted, I don't take a lot of time to get them out, but still..... My famiy is finally catching on that even though I'm 49 I still am going to play with Lego! My in-laws even bought me the R2D2/C3PO Star Wars set for Christmas

As far as childhood memories goes, I still remember some of our first creations being a duplicate of a McDonald's -- at least as best as we could with the limited pieces we had. Back then McDonald's were still red and white striped buildings with yellow arches. Since Lego's mainly came in red and white pieces back then it was a logical match I guess. The yellow arches were a bit of a challenge.

My cousin always had way cooler Lego than me and I wished I had his electrified clear pieces....but I bet I have more Lego than he does now!
My favorite current Lego set is my Pirate Ship that my husband bought me. is understanding your spouse's favorite fun stuff, even if it does seem silly to you!

Our daughter had Duplos when she was a toddler. They came in a plush Red Rabbit who looks for all the world like "Clifford the Big Red Dog" except with rabbit ears! There was a zipper in the back and you put Duplos inside. She still has the rabbit, about 16 years later

ChilHood??

From dipers and primo to smart and duplo we are now building for the largest tree ( duplo 2*2, 2*4, combined stacks of blocks).

One grew birds in it ( chopper feet, default 2*4 body, rear airplane wing, 2*2 rounded down to 2*3 as beak, some eyed blocks as head) they were inspired by 3 year.
The trees grew branches and suddenly a pine tree appeared by 5 year.

I used the (rare) tubeless to slide in locks etc. Most common in my assort was evenly 2*4(*3) and 1*4(*3).
All sorts of games: longest bridge toughest wall, mechanics with toothed wheels and ever bending axes.

Only thing is I feel sorry with the ever growing range of pieces we already leave in the box. Those have been over specialised, they do not fit very well due to lack of connectors( how are these called).
This is as sorry for the peaces in my good old days, those where broken left behind.

My compliments for the designers, there is even between the Supersizes enough compatibility.